welcome to assignment 7. today on our program, latest efforts to make technology more accessible to the disabled here in the bay area. plus.... >> if a for profit hospital she has a greater chance of having a c-section. >> an important decision for expecting mothers may depend more on the hospital they choose and saving for college, first of a kind program for kindergarteners. the city puts in the first $50. >> we begin with a breakthrough. researchers in san jose are studying the behavior of atoms and it could change computers as we know it.

ibm scientist and sebastian will tell you it takes a big machine to study small matter. this highly refined microscope allows them today the of of atoms. >> it's the smallest you are going to do engineering with. our mission how can we do data storage starting from single atoms. >> they are part of a team that has developed a breakthrough technique, they just published their research in the journal of science. they have the ability to record the behavior inside atoms spinning at incredible speeds. that has unlocked the mist of how long information stays in a single atom. >> one atom, one nano second, you can't do ones because that is a billionth of a second. >> but this scanning microscope

can move atoms. they use a model to illustrate what happens when they manipulate the red iron atom. >> another atom goes to it. it increases the time by a factor of 200. >> they are envisioning data storage, that sounds like science fiction. the information than this hard drive. >> it ranges from an increase in the number of songs and movies on your i-pod to a quantum leap in solar technology. >> in the and we can create institutional and prototypes that may eventually end up in products. they have been working on the project for 12 years. this breakthrough gives people a glimpse in what is possible for atom storage.

the journey will not be measured in years but in decades. there are new efforts in the bay area to make high-tech products more accessible for the disabled. david louie reports. >> there was ah-ah moment when they unveiled the iphone 4. instead of back and face cameras it opened a new door for people. there was an immediate reaction. >> they had tears in their eyes when they realize this had a completely different meaning, actual lay large population of disabled. >> building accessibility into the latest technology is helping the blind or people with limited vision. >> despite these examples of progress, users and engineers say problems still remain.

>> it doesn't matter with it's iphone or blackberry, the accessibility is not there yet. >> victor is the accessibility project manager at yahoo. he tries to come up with solutions but it's not that simple. >> i've been a computer user for years and it works for other people, but i don't want to people to judge this based on what i think. >> he has succeeded in doing is getting colleagues making accessibility part of any project and service at yahoo. >> it will make me understand, it's unfortunate that people won't use it so you shouldn't be happy putting it out unless everybody can use it. >> and there is something that goes beyond public benefit. they are focused on the issue

for 30 years says the 60 million disabled in the u.s. have a disposable income of $220 billion. >> most companies come in and see as customers, we have a hard time standing here if it was different. >> we visited the school of the deaf. they rely on mobile phones for texting. one deficiency they would like address second-degree slow speeds that make visibility poor. >> it looks like a ghost trail when people are signing. you can see the travel of the sign language and i wish they would improve on that. >> meeting the needs of every disabled person may be a challenge but there is optimism and doubt on how soon it will happen. >> i'm hoping it will be ten years but sooner than that and they will make progress, but will they? i don't know.

>> silicon valley companies and other companies will grow more sensitive to the needs of the deaf community, a community knows that the technical prowess exists. >> researchers at stanford have developed a cheap way to purify water in poorer parts of the world and on camping trips. >> she is purifying water thousands of times faster than any times before it. it uses nanotechnology. >> people would drop a silver dollar dollar to clean it. >> if you run a minute amount of elect it amply ties the bacterial powers thousands of times. they are making the first batteries, cotton infused with

the hottest thing today. so they have nano wires. >> using electricity and nano wires to try to treat water. >> nano silver with nano carbon did the trick. they could get 98% of the e. coli in the water in one pass. >> just tiny amounts, there is no reason we can't do thousands of gallons quickly. >> in fact all the water used by one household in one year could be treated with one filter in one hour the size of a kitchen sink. >> the biggest applications will be remote areas, third world countries. >> with a couple of batteries you could take something like

this on the camping trip. richard hart, "abc 7 news." and environmental dilemma faces cal trains. how do protect their one of a kind plant. plus.... >> when you are bigger you're all going to college? >> the program is n san francisco giving kindergarteners a downpayment for cololololololñ

welcome back. bay area environmentalist are trying to get a plant listed on the endangered species list. >> scientists thought the franciscan manzanita was gone forever but last fall they were on a doyle drive off-ramp and something caught his eye. >> i phoned a professor kind of

excited, i said i'm sorry lou, what if it were. >> nestled between the retaining wall it was a large franciscan manzanita. work on clearing the vegetation revealed it to his sharp eye. >> there is some speculation it could have been there since spanish times and survived the construction of the bridge. it's more likely it came up from seeds buried in the soil. >> the location was kept secret and it was moved to another secret spot. a process requiring cooperation among groups that don't normally see eye to eye. >> it could have been a train wreck, a billion dollar bridge project, instead everyone held hands for the price of a couple thousand cups of coffee. >> it requires the federal government to add to it endangered species list. >> it protects endangered plants but not extinct plants.

>> an executive director is petitioning. >> it's not a question of signatures, its formal document, they call it a petition to list it as an endangered species and that kick started a process to protect plant plant. >> he expected it to be lifted within a year. and when it happens a recovery plan will go into place but that should not stand in the way of doyle construction. heather ishimaru, "abc 7 news." it's only in san francisco program. this one helps youngsters help pay for their college education. it's called kindergarten to college. >> these kindergarteners at sanchez elementary school in the mission district learn they'll soon have a college savings account. >> when you are bigger you're going on college, right? >> they are the first to invest

taxpayer money to help them afford higher education. >> the only way school districts are successful is when entire communities behind them and start believing in the can children. >> the amount is not large, just $50 or $100 for low income students. the idea is that private corporations and nonprofits will step up with matching grants and parents are being encouraged to chip in. >> she is talking about her daughter. she and 1200 of the city's kindergarteners will be included in the pilot program this year with expectations that by the third year 100 am will be covered. >> san francisco's program is unique but there are others emphasizing the importance of a college education. including this charter school appropriately called st. college now.

for the past few years they have gichbth grade is $1,000 college scholarships. >> that is something tangible and powerful and make sure they will stay motivated. >> the budget authorizes $257,000 to get the program started. a supervisor thinks that is a response given the current financial climate. >> i don't believe now is the right time to extend ourselves into a new entitlement program. it could cost us millions of dollars in the future. >> we make investments, we just don't make cuts. >> citibank sets up the accounts for free. c-section or natural birth, a new report suggests important decision for expectant mothers may depend on the hospital they choose. and a local couple says the lamp keeps burnrnrnrnrnrnrnrnrnrnrnrn

♪ whoa ♪ ♪ ♪ one tribe, y'all ♪ one tribe, y'all ♪ one tribe, y'all ♪ we are one people [ female announcer ] when you choose pepsi, you support the pepsi refresh project. which is giving away millions of dollars to refresh communities across america. ♪ one, one, one people [ female announcer ] so choose pepsi. ♪ one tribe, y'all [ female announcer ] every pepsi refreshes the world. ♪ one, one, one people - hello! - ha! why don't you try a home cooked meal... with yummy hamburger helper?

oh! tada! fantastically tasty, huh? ummm, it's good. what would you guys like? hamburger helper. what?! one pound... one pan... one tasty meal! with not having enough food. that's why i've teamed up with feeding america and hamburger helper®. when you buy hamburger helper® you can help feeding america deliver a meal to a local food bank. visit this website to see how you can help.

welcome back. women are more likely to have a cesarean section at a private hospital than a public one. carolyn johnson looks at the findings. >> for expectant mothers, whether they are going to have a c-section is on their minds. >> i'm going to have a c-section if they induce me and i was nervous because the recovery time was a lot longer. being a first time mom i didn't know what to expect. >> she ended not having the c-section but more babies are being delivered that way. from 1996 to 2007 the rate of c-sections rose 56% and turns out the odds of having one, it has something to do with where you deliver your baby. >> we looked at hospitals for

profit or nonprofit, there we saw you a significant difference. >> california watch reporter nathaniel johnson poured over the records and found significant differences. in general, c-section rates have been climbing for years partly because of older mothers and increasing obesity. johnson took out the highest risk for analysis. >> we found a healthy woman walking into at hospital, if its for profit hospital, she has a greater chance of having a c-section. >> in fact 15% more likely. they were found in hospitals catering to all ethnic groups and. >> there were lots of examples of hospitals in the same area

serving the same population with radically different rates. >> some of it may be patient characteristics but it could be hospital, physician characteristics. >> he chair of obstetrics and gynecology in san francisco. its private hospital. >> its difficult business. we can be damned for doing too few c-sections and damned if we too many. >> the rate was lower than the statewide average for similar hospitals. >> many of the public hospitals are teaching hospitals and have more standardized approach to care. in a private hospital there is a lot more independence of the physician. >> but it is major abdominal surge with a higher risk of complications.

>> so it leads to a second and third and that is where most of the complications arise. much more with secondly or third cesarean birth. >> a dramatic increase in the maternal death rate. they are exploring the possible connection to the rise in c-sections. comparing to hospital with similar demographics they revealed that rising c-section rates cannot be attributed to changes in patient's health but johnson says one significant conclusion can be drawn. >> it looks like people are doing a lot of unnecessary c-sections out there. >> >> most popular tvs in recent years has been the projection lcd. michael finney explains. >> jack and arlene were enjoying their big screen tv when they heard a groan and a pop. >> we turned it on again and it

went like that. >> second time it was a bang, actually. >> the screen went black. it had happened before. the projection lamp of their rear projection lcd had burned out. no problem, the tv was still d under andd under extended warranty with a company. so they made a claim. >> what do you mean it's not covered. you covered it two years ago. >> we don't cover that lamp. i said, well, according to my contract, it doesn't say it doesn't cover it. >> the warranty company had been sold to new owners who called the prior coverage a gift. so they faced $314 for a new lamp called 7 on your side. we contacted the company and sure enough it pointed to the clause saying the warranty doesn't cover consumer

replaceable items. to double check we looked at toshiba's owner's manual, right there, the lamp is replaceable and shows how to do it. >> this is tv repair expert richard wong of art's tv service in san francisco. many projection tv owners are surprised to learn that the lamps blow out every few years. >> jack and arlene are certainly surprised to hear this, too. >> so apparently this type of projection tv has a history of the lamp going out every two years. we weren't told that when we bought. >> it is it the warranty company's fault? still after 7 on your side pointed out the company, they

didn't change. we decided the right thing to do was reimburse the cost of the replacement bulb due to historic issues the customer had. we look at each issue on a case by case basis and work to do what is right. >> they did a reversal and i got a check in the mail. i don't know what you did. it worked a miracle. up next, a bay area man with a unique baseball collection, the celebrity signatures he's gathered over the years. @ñ@ñ@ñ@ñ

with celebrity and fame come obligations, among them is autographs. some celebrities sign all kinds of things, from paper to bare skin. as wayne freedman found out a castro valley man had a better idea. >> we are about to show you the

difference between filing and piling. >> there is a pool table under this. >> bob of castro valley, what somebody collects stuff like this it's multiple layers even in the kitchen again. >> couple years ago i had a party. >> looks like you never cleaned up. >> that is a thought. >> if you go through the piles you will find one recurring theme that baseball never ends. 6400 autographed baseballs. >> roger maris. ted williams, babe ruth. >> but the rest like gene kelly, dear abby fills personal requests. >> post office loved me. >> he would throw in a photo and

add themselves to his collection. >> they are famous people. >> so you settle on baseballs because? >> they are different. >> but now the twist because after three decades and 6400 signatures, bob has decided to put the entire collection up for sale. >> how will it go? >> i would is like to see in it vegas and other people can see. >> it bob estimatesmight be worth millions because the collection is so complete and so quirky. >> he zbhot john wayne and john wayne gacy. clearly this is a well thought out collection. >> and filed, we might add, not piled.

>> if you want more information on the stories on our program today, just go to our website at www.abc7.com. that is all for this edition of assignment 7. i'm kristen sze. thank you so much for joining us we'll see you back here next time. >> any next at 5:00, winter rains are blowing into the bay area. the battle over same-sex marriage returns to san francisco court. the federal hearing will be broadcast live. and 1,000 as go -- rats go up for adoption on monday.

join us